BERLIN – For the first time in months, the Berlin Planning Commission was asked to consider a new housing development in town.Developer Main Street Homes from Gaithersburg, Md. asked the Planning Commission Wednesday night to offer comments on its concept for a 38-house subdivision on 11 acres at the corner of Tripoli St. and Route… Read more »

BERLIN – Two new programs to help Berlin electric customers pay their bills and reduce their electric costs have been put in place just in time for colder weather.Electric customers in dire straits can now receive assistance in paying those bills through Berlin’s new Energy Assistance Program. The new program is available through ShoreUp! and… Read more »

OCEAN CITY — In the brief this week, the Ocean City Police Department got a grant for some new technology, and the Fire Marshal’s Office reminded single-family homeowners that they too need a carbon monoxide detector.Police Department Gets NodFor New Surveillance GearCaptain Robert Bokinsky of the Ocean City Police Department asked for permission to use… Read more »

BERLIN – Berlin’s three parks should echo the town’s historic downtown to present a sense of identity and cohesion, according to a parks master plan presented this week.Steve Engel and Frank Kea of Vista Design offered a new vision for Berlin’s three parks that should improve usability and aesthetics and make Berlin’s dedicated open space… Read more »

OCEAN CITY — The town brought in an expert to basically tell the Mayor and City Council that a massive overhaul to Ocean City employee’s pension packages would be a dumb move.Pat Donahue, President and CEO of Municipal and Financial Services Group (MSFG) and 10-year veteran of the Anne Arundel County Pension Oversight Committee, was… Read more »

BERLIN – A former Ocean City Elementary School (OCES) teacher late last month filed a formal complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), alleging a pattern of discrimination and retaliation for not heeding her principal’s warning not to get pregnant.On Sept. 30, former OCES teacher Lyndsay Greenan, through her attorney Robin Cockey, filed a… Read more »

BERLIN – Changes in how Berlin’s power plant is run have saved the town probably $600,000, according to electric consultants Booth and Associates.Booth Vice President Dwight Davis said, during a report on the state of the town’s electric utility this week, that they would soon get confirmation that the power plant hit all peak hours… Read more »

BERLIN – Berlin wastewater customers should pay less than $3 a month more to fund the improvements to the Berlin wastewater treatment plant, and the special connection fee should be much less than predicted a year ago after the award of substantial grants and low-interest loans to the project.The $15.7 million project will be funded… Read more »

SNOW HILL – A small measure of closure in the saga of the Cowboyz Smokehouse and Saloon, closed in September amid health code violations and an investigation into underage drinking and late-night pornography sessions, was meted out yesterday when the owner surrendered the establishment’s liquor license.At a scheduled county Board of License Commissioners hearing, for… Read more »

BERLIN – The Worcester County Sheriff’s Office this week issued a warning about a possible suspect posing as an employee of a utility company knocking on doors and attempting to collect money in the Berlin area.Around 4 p.m. last Thursday, a Worcester County Sheriff’s Deputy responded to Choptank Electric in reference to a suspicious person… Read more »